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Fight to derail Mark Green intensifies as House Dems urge opposition

31 House Democrats urge Senate to reject nomination over anti-trans views

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LGBT advocates are trying to derail the nomination of Tenn. state Sen. Mark Green as Army secretary. (Photo courtesy of Dr. Mark Green for Tennessee)

The effort to derail the appointment of Mark Green as Army secretary intensified this week as the nominee lashed out over LGBT rights supporters campaign against him and House Democrats urged the Senate to reject his confirmation.

In a letter dated April 24, 31 House Democrats call on the leaders of the Senate Armed Services Committee to oppose Green on the basis that the anti-LGBT positions he’s taken over his political career have “made it clear that he cannot be trusted to ensure that LGBT soldiers are able to serve their country without discrimination or harassment.”

“LGBT soldiers are willing to make tremendous sacrifices to protect our rights and freedoms,” the letter says. “It would be deeply disrespectful to their service to appoint a secretary of the Army whose history of homophobia and transphobia makes it clear that he is not willing to do the same for them.”

Spearheading the letter was Rep. Joe Kennedy III (D-Mass.), who said in an interview with the Washington Blade he hasn’t yet had conversations with senators about the nomination, but thinks the letter makes the clear the opposition of signers to the nominee.

Kennedy, the chair of the Congressional Transgender Task Force, pointed out as Army secretary Green would be in charge of as many as 11,000 transgender people serve the U.S. military, according to a RAND Corp. estimate.

“Given what he said, what he has made clear his beliefs are, he has no business being overseeing the Army or any other branch of the armed services, or the United States writ large,” Kennedy said.

Nominated by President Trump earlier this month, Green spearheaded legislation as a Tennessee state legislator that would have barred municipalities from enacting pro-LGBT non-discrimination ordinances and another bill seeking to bar transgender students from using the restroom consistent with their gender identity. Green also supported a law signed by Gov. Bill Haslam allowing mental health practitioners to reject LGBT patients for religious reasons.

But it’s Green’s remarks on LGBT people that have particularly raised eyebrows. During a town hall event in Tennessee before the Chattanooga Tea Party last year, Green equated being transgender to having a “disease,” a view major medical organizations have rejected.

The LGBT media watchdog GLAAD also uncovered audio of an interview of Green last year on an online radio show in which he said he wants to “crush evil” by keeping transgender women from the restroom, comparing them to ISIS.

“So that means as a state senator, my responsibility very clearly in Romans 13 is to create an environment where people who do right are rewarded and the people who do wrong are crushed,” Green said. “Evil is crushed. So Iā€™m going to protect women in their bathrooms, and Iā€™m going to protect our state against potential infiltration from the Syrian ISIS people in the refugee program. And whoever wants to stand up and take me on that, Iā€™m ready to fight.”

Defending himself in a Facebook post, Green accused the “liberal left” of splicing his words and “blatantly falsifying what I’ve said,” denying that he ever called transgender people evil. (The quote from the radio interview is accurate.) The Facebook post links to an article on anti-LGBT website, ChristianFighterPilot.com, which asserts “homosexual activists” are target Green because he’s a Christian.

Asked whether he thinks Green’s nomination will ultimately be derailed, Kennedy said he’d urge senators to take a close look at Green and “ask a pretty simple question as to whether they believe somebody who has described a significant portion of the American population as ‘evil’ should be in charge of our Army.”

“This gets back to just a fundamental principle of whether our government is going to recognize, see and celebrate diversity and inclusion and be able to acknowledge and lift up those who are willing to put their life on the line to defend the rest of us,” Kennedy said.

The Blade has sought comment on the letter from House Democrats from the offices of Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.), chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and Jack Reed (D-R.I.), top Democrat on the committee.

Although the Trump administration has made other anti-LGBT appointments, such as Jeff Sessions as U.S. attorney general, Kennedy said the nomination of Mark Green as Army secretary is “beyond the pale” compared to the other actions.

“I think we’ve seen a pattern of actions by this administration that have targeted the LGBT community,” Kennedy said. “All of them, I believe, have been horrible. This one, I think, the idea that somebody who holds these beliefs about the trans community, you elevate that believes such view to the secretary of the Army, I think is just beyond the pale.”

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Congress

Sens. Butler, Smith introduce Pride in Mental Health Act to aid at-risk LGBTQ youth

Bill is backed by Democrats in both chambers

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U.S. Sen. Laphonza Butler (D-Calif.) speaks at the International LGBTQ Leaders Conference on Nov. 30, 2023. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

U.S. Sens. Laphonza Butler (D-Calif.) and Tina Smith (D-Minn.) introduced the Pride in Mental Health Act on Thursday, legislation that would strengthen resources in mental health and crisis intervention for at-risk LGBTQ youth.

ā€œAccessing mental health care and support has become increasingly difficult in nearly every state in the country,ā€Ā said Butler, who is the first Black LGBTQ senator. ā€œBarriers get even more difficult if you are a young person who lacks a supportive community or is fearful of being outed, harassed, or threatened.”

“I am introducing the Pride in Mental Health Act to help equip LGBTQ+ youth with the resources to get the affirming and often life-saving care they need,” she said.

ā€œMental health care is health care,” said Smith. “And for some LGBTQ+ youth, receiving access to the mental health care they need can mean the difference between living in safety and dignity, and suffering alone through discrimination, bullying, and even violence.ā€Ā 

The Minnesota senator added that data shows LGBTQ students are experiencing “an epidemic” of “anxiety, depression and other serious mental health conditions.”

For example, a 2023 study by The Trevor Project found that 54 percent of LGBTQ youth reported symptoms of depression, compared to 35 percent of their heterosexual counterparts.

Joining the senators as cosponsors are Democratic U.S. Sens. Ed Markey (Mass.), Bob Casey (Penn.), Peter Welch (Vt.), Alex Padilla (Calif.), Jeff Merkley (Ore.), Cory Booker (N.J.), and Tammy Baldwin (Wis.). Baldwin was the first LGBTQ woman elected to the House in 1999 and the first LGBTQ woman elected to the Senate in 2013.

Leading the House version of the bill are LGBTQ Democratic U.S. Reps. Sharice Davids (Kan.), Eric Sorensen (Ill.), and Ritchie Torres (N.Y.), along with 163 other House members.

Organizations that have backed the Pride in Mental Health Act include the Human Rights Campaign, GLSEN, American Academy of Pediatrics, National Education Association (NEA), National Center for Transgender Equality, Seattle Indian Health Board, PFLAG National, The Trevor Project, American Psychological Association, Whitman-Walker Institute, InterACT: Advocates for Intersex Youth, National Alliance on Mental Illness, American Federation of Teachers (AFT), Mental Health America, and Center for Law and Social Policy.

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District of Columbia

D.C. mayorĀ honors 10th anniversary of Team Rayceen Productions

LGBTQ entertainment, advocacy organization praised for ā€˜vital workā€™

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Rayceen Pendarvis co-founded Team Rayceen Productions. (Washington Blade photo by Michael Key)

D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser today issued an official proclamation declaring Monday, March 18, 2024, as Team Rayceen Day in honor of the local LGBTQ entertainment and advocacy organization Team Rayceen Productions named after its co-founder Rayceen Pendarvis.

ā€œWhereas Rayceen, along with Team Rayceen Productions co-founder, Zar, have spent 10 years advocating for the Black LGBTQI+ community using various forms including in-person events, social media, and YouTube,ā€ the proclamation states.

The proclamation adds that through its YouTube Channel, Team Rayceen Productions created a platform for ā€œBlack LGBTQIA+ individuals to discuss various topics including spotlighting nonprofit organizations and small businesses, voter registration and participation, the state of LGBTQIA+ rights and resources in D.C, gender equality and equity, and the amplification of opportunities to bring the community together.ā€

It also praises Team Rayceen Productions for its partnership with the Mayorā€™s Office of LGBTQ Affairs in helping to produce ā€œexciting events like the District of Pride talent showcase held each June and the iconic 17th Street High Heel Race celebrated in October.ā€

ā€œWhereas I thank Team Rayceen Productions for its vital and necessary work and am #DCProud to wish you all the best as you continue to support Black LGBTQIA+ residents across all 8 Wards,ā€ the proclamation continues.

ā€œNow, therefore, I, the Mayor of Washington, D.C., do hereby proclaim March 18, 2024, as TEAM RAYCEEN DAY in Washington, D.C. and do commit this observance to all Washingtonians,ā€ it concludes.

ā€œWe thank Mayor Bowser for this special proclamation, which highlights where it all began, with the Black LGBTQIA+ community of Washington, D.C,ā€ Team Rayceen Productions says in a statement. ā€œStarting with The Ask Rayceen Show, Reel Affirmation, and events with D.C. Public Library to Art All Night, Silver Pride by Whitman-Walker, and events with the Mayorā€™s Office of LGBTQ Affairs, we are #dcproud of what we have accomplished in the Nationā€™s Capital,ā€ the statement says. 

“For TEAM RAYCEEN DAY, we thank the diverse group of individuals who have made everything we have done possible by volunteering their time and talents over the past decade ā€“ as online co-hosts, event staff, performers, DJs, photographers, and more,ā€ says the statement.

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U.S. Supreme Court

Supreme Court declines to hear case over drag show at Texas university

Students argue First Amendment protects performance

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The U.S. Supreme Court justices on June 30, 2022. ((Photo by Fred Schilling of the U.S. Supreme Court)

The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday declined to hear a First Amendment case over a public university president’s refusal to allow an LGBTQ student group to host a drag show on campus.

The group’s application was denied without the justices providing their reasoning or issuing dissenting opinions, as is custom for such requests for emergency review.

When plaintiffs sought to organize the drag performance to raise money for suicide prevention in March 2023, West Texas A&M University President Walter Wendler cancelled the event, citing the Bible and other religious texts.

The students sued, arguing the move constituted prior restraint and viewpoint-based discrimination, in violation of the First Amendment. Wendler had called drag shows ā€œderisive, divisive and demoralizing misogyny,” adding that “a harmless drag show” was “not possible.”

The notoriously conservative Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, who former President Donald Trump appointed to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, ruled against the plaintiffs in September, writing that ā€œit is not clearly established that all drag shows are inherently expressive.”

Kacsmaryk further argued that the High Court’s precedent-setting opinions protecting stage performances and establishing that “speech may not be banned on the ground that it expresses ideas that offend” was inconsistent with constitutional interpretation based on ā€œtext, history and tradition.”

Plaintiffs appealed to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which is by far the most conservative of the nation’s 12 appellate circuit courts. They sought emergency review by the Supreme Court because the 5th Circuit refused to fast-track their case, so arguments were scheduled to begin after the date of their drag show.

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